Students build greenhouse robots at Westminster High School Email
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Tuesday, April 10, 2018 04:00 AM


FarmBotThough they won’t resemble a Star Wars droid, the new FarmBots coming this spring to Westminster High School will increase efficiency and raise the bar on the technology that horticulture students learn while growing. The high-tech robot is courtesy of a $4,500 grant awarded by Colorado Garden & Home Show Foundation.

The project involves horticulture students and the school’s technology students who will work together to construct three raised beds and fabricate its robotic apparatus from metal, plastic and computer components. Beds range in size—4 x 4 ft., 18 x 4 ft. and 16 x 3 ft. FarmBots will plant, water and weed each bed.

According to horticulture instructor Heather Crabtree, students will be able to interact with FarmBots via computers or a phone app and watch their crops remotely through the Bot’s cameras. Students will tell the Bot which crops it is to plant in each row and the Bot will plant seeds according to plant-specific depths. Crabtree says the precision of the Bot enables more sustainable growing by removing human error when planting which improves germination and watering only the plant which saves water.

Read more in this issue of Colorado Green NOW:
April is National Lawn Care Month
Volunteer Service Awards recognize dedication to industry service

Lesley Golub: 20 years at ALCC
Ladder safety training can save lives